Chapter 2 Tatyana
Tatyana
Tatyana Vorona wished that she did not employ household staff, because she wanted to slam a door so badly it was like acid on her tongue.
Though seeing as vampire strength would probably break the heavy oak doors of her house on Clucerului Street, it was probably a good thing she wasn’t the one opening and closing them anymore.
“Rumi, is the rest of the staff gone?” Tatyana pulled off her gloves and tossed them on the entry table in the foyer.
“Yes. I told you I’d send them home.” Rumi walked over and took the overcoat that Tatyana handed her. “That bad? You left the house in a bad mood and returned in a worse mood.”
“Just… him.”
Rumi chuckled. “You’re the one who—”
“Don’t!” She held up her hand. “Don’t remind me.”
“I assume he is coming over?”
“Of course he’s coming over,” she grumbled, then walked over, shoved up the sleeves of her blouse, and plunged her hands into the ice-cold water of the fountain fixed to a wall.
The deep-set blue ceramic bowl was decorated with an elaborate mosaic in lapis lazuli, malachite, and gold tiles, a seascape surrounding a bronze fish that spouted water from its mouth.
The flow touched her amnis and spread through her body, her element soothed by the flow of salt water over her skin.
The tiles of the mosaic were flecked with gold, and tiny gemstones were embedded in the mortar, winking at her as they reflected the light.
The calm lasted only as long as it took Rumi to walk over and place a cotton towel over her shoulder, which only reminded her that she couldn’t stare at the water all night.
“I cleared your calendar with Darek, and he says he will forward the email he received from the truck dealer. The short version is that it will not be a problem to get them by next week.”
“Good.” She took a deep and cleansing breath.
Vampires didn’t need to breathe, a fact for which she was utterly grateful when she went swimming in the sea or submerged herself into the saltwater pool at her mother’s home in Wilga, a beautiful village an hour outside Warsaw.
But breathing practice was good to calm her mind. As meditation, it still worked.
The house in Bucharest with the mosaic fountain was a replacement for the brutalist, modern mansion Vano had built outside of town when he had been terrin.
Since Bucharest was the unofficial political capital for the Poshani clan, Tatyana had needed a home there, though she spent most of her time in the Polish capital.
Tatyana had spent five years cleaning up Vano’s messes. Five years rooting out the corrupt contracts and pet projects that only funneled Poshani money into the pockets of those who did Vano favors.
She had streamlined Eastern Poshani businesses, modernized their fleet of vehicles, and created a shipping and logistics company that catered to a very specific niche.
If you were an immortal who wanted to move something discreetly across Europe, Tatyana’s people were the ones to call. Nothing too illegal. Absolutely no human trafficking or drugs. But the majority of blood-wine that was shipped east went through them. Most of the vampire-safe electronics as well.
Khori Transport specialized in things that would cause questions with human-run businesses. They were small but very fast.
Which made the loss of five temperature-controlled trucks—a drop in the logistical bucket for a vampire like Oleg Sokolov—a huge loss for Tatyana.
She heard the terrace doors open, and the scent of crisp winter air flowed into the hallway along with the scent of burning cedar and a hint of dark rum.
Rumi headed toward the door. “I’m leaving now.” She kept her voice low. “The guards are stationed in front. Don’t break anything too hard to replace.”
Tatyana turned her head and saw Oleg Sokolov, vampire lord of the Kievan Rus, fire vampire, and her blood mate striding down the hall.
“Hello, wife.”
The smirk on his face eliminated every deep breath she’d taken.
“Five trucks and five injured drivers?” Tatyana hissed. “Are you fucking kidding me, Oleg? This petty, vindictive little play you have going on with your brother—”
He strode to her, wrapped his arm around her waist, and pulled her into a ferocious kiss that had the hairs on her arms standing on end.
She felt his hunger streak through her blood, the wanton need for her touch twisting with pure sexual frustration.
Tatyana threw her arms around his neck and dug her fingers into his skin, her nails digging so hard she smelled the blood rise.
Oleg pulled her away from the fountain and lifted her, backing her into the wall and shoving his tongue into her mouth. Her fangs were already down, and the taste of his blood filling her mouth ignited the fire that was already burning through her body.
He tugged at her hair, fisting the knot in his hand as he angled her head so he could plunder her mouth, then pulled back, and Tatyana gasped for breath as his fangs pierced the delicate skin of her neck.
She cried out, the combination of his fierce embrace and his bite throwing her into a sharp climax.
The scent of her arousal filled the air in the foyer, and within moments, Oleg had her skirt shoved up and his pants down, entering her in a swift thrust that cracked the plaster behind her back.
Every thought, every argument, every angry word left her when their bodies were joined, and she gave in to the harmony of their blood.
No matter how they argued, their blood sang the truth.
There is my love.
There is my mate.
There is my home.
“Too long,” he growled. “I can’t—”
“Come.” Her body was still convulsing with pleasure. “Please come.”
He let out a deep, guttural groan, and the hair on the back of his neck sizzled under her fingers as she drew the water in the air around them.
Her husband never lost control of his fire.
Save for this moment.
This release.
He let out a stream of guttural words in a language that had probably been dead for centuries, holding her to his chest with an iron grip. He peppered kisses against her neck, licking at the wounds he had left and healing them so her skin was unmarred.
“I ruined your suit.” His voice rumbled against her chest.
“You can buy me another one.”
Now his fingers danced over her thighs, delicately playing with the flesh he’d been so eager to plunder. “I like this one. The color suits you.”
“Thank you. Rumi hired a new stylist for me. She takes these trips to Paris and Milan.”
“Mmm.” His hunger sated for the moment, now her mate was purring. “I can already hear your objections.” His lips whispered across the line of her jaw. “‘A waste of money. Useless luxury.’”
“It is a useless—”
“They make you look like a goddess.” He pulled back and met her eyes with his fierce stare, which had always reminded Tatyana of a bird of prey. Her own personal firebird. “They make you look like a queen.”
“Can we not have this conversation when you are literally in me and still hard?”
“There is no better time to have any conversation than when I am in you and hard.”
Now she was laughing. “Oleg, put me down.”
“No.” He kicked off his trousers and stepped out of them. “You installed that giant copper tub for a reason, and we are making use of it.”
“I can walk.”
“Do you think I’m going to drop you?” He was still wearing his suit jacket, his button-down shirt, and his handmade leather shoes when he started up the stairs. He slapped her bottom and lifted her higher. “I am not one of your soft little office boys.”
“No, you’re the most arrogant man who has ever lived.”
“I know. You’re welcome.”
They lounged in the tub, letting the steam curl around them. It was Tatyana’s one indulgence in each house where she resided. There would be at least one bathroom with steam vents and a massive tub so she could relax for hours.
She could warm her body with her immortal energy, but her base temperature was cool now. Being surrounded by heat made her feel a little more human.
And there was nothing that made her feel more human than leaning against Oleg’s muscled chest, his skin hot to the touch while he played with her hair.
She closed her eyes and luxuriated in the sensation of her blood moving within him.
“I want to create a piece on that wall.” Oleg spread his hand out, gesturing to the wall that faced the tub where two arched windows looked out into the clear night sky.
“A landscape perhaps. Create a focal point with a full moon. Or a sunset to bring in warm tones.” He ran his fingers along her hairline.
“Yes, a sunset. Bring in the reds and golds to complement the copper in the fixtures you’ve picked. ”
She sighed against his chest, happily releasing the last of the tension she’d woken with at sunset. “The only problem is that I would not be able to use this bathroom for months while you sneak away from Odesa to secretly install a mosaic in a bathroom I only use a few times a year.”
His fingers froze. “You could spend more time here.”
“Because it’s only an hour flight to Odesa?”
“Bucharest is a lovely city, and this is a delightful house.”
It was far easier for Oleg to sneak into Bucharest with some kind of business excuse than it was for him to fly to Warsaw, even though the flight was only one hour longer.
For five years, they had existed in this limbo, playing rivals and reluctant allies to the outside world while trying to create some kind of relationship that only their closest confidantes knew about.
Even Radu—as much as Tatyana trusted him and as much as her brother liked Oleg—did not know they were blood mates.
Did Radu know Tatyana and Oleg had been lovers? Yes.
Did he suspect they still were? Maybe.
It wasn’t something she spoke about with either of her fellow terrin.
Tatyana turned her face and pressed her cheek against Oleg’s chest. “I can try to be here more. I do like this house.”
“Yes.” His voice was more positive. “It’s very cozy.”
“It has five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, and a front and back garden in the middle of the city.”